OHSU Doernbecher ranks among the nation’s best children’s hospitals in 10 specialties

06/10/14  Portland, Ore.

The children’s hospital has been nationally ranked since it first applied for consideration in 2009

OHSU Doernbecher ranks among the nation’s best children’s hospitals in 10 specialties Oregon Health & Science University Doernbecher Children’s Hospital ranks among the best children’s hospitals in the United States, according to U.S. News & World Report’s 2014-15 Best Children’s Hospitals.

The Best Children’s Hospitals rankings highlight U.S. News’ top 50 U.S. pediatric facilities in cancer, cardiology & heart surgery, diabetes & endocrinology, gastroenterology & GI surgery, neonatology, nephrology, neurology & neurosurgery, orthopedics, pulmonology and urology. Eighty-nine hospitals ranked in at least one specialty, based on a combination of clinical data and reputation with pediatric specialists.

This year, OHSU Doernbecher ranks in all 10 of the pediatric specialties the news magazine evaluates:

“This recognition reflects the commitment of hundreds of physicians, nurses and staff at OHSU Doernbecher who each day provide exceptional care to the children and adolescents of Oregon, Southwest Washington and beyond. We are exceedingly proud of our world-class team,” said Jodi Coombs, R.N., M.B.A., vice president for Women’s & Children’s Services, OHSU Doernbecher Children’s Hospital.

OHSU Doernbecher is the only medical center in Oregon whose pediatric specialties met U.S. News’ criteria for:

  • Level and quality of hospital resources, including staffing, technology and special services.
  • Delivery of care, such as reputation among pediatric specialists, programs that prevent infections and adherence to best practices.
  • Clinical outcomes, including patient survival infection rates and complications.

The rankings are based on an extensive analysis using a methodology that combines clinical and operational data collected directly from a survey of children’s hospitals, results from a reputational survey of board-certified pediatric specialists and supplemental information from resources such as the National Cancer Institute.

U.S. News introduced the Best Children’s Hospitals rankings in 2007 to help families of sick children find the best medical care available. The rankings offer families an exclusive look at quality-related information at the individual hospital level.

To gather clinical data, U.S. News sent a clinical questionnaire to 183 pediatric hospitals. The remaining one-sixth of the score derived from a survey of 450 pediatric specialists and subspecialists in each specialty over three years. The 4,500 physicians were asked where they would send the sickest children in their specialty, setting aside location and expense.

Survival rates, adequacy of nurse staffing, procedure volume, etc., can be viewed online and will be published in the U.S. News “Best Hospitals 2015” guidebook in August.

About OHSU Doernbecher Children’s Hospital

OHSU Doernbecher Children's Hospital ranks among the nation’s Best Children’s Hospitals,* is one of 21 members of the Children’s Oncology Group’s Phase 1 and Pilot Consortium, and ranks 39th for NIH awards to children's hospitals and their university-affiliated Department of Pediatrics.** Nationally recognized physicians and nurses provide a full range of specialty and subspecialty care to tens of thousands of children annually, resulting in 200,000 discharges, surgeries, transports and outpatient visits annually in a patient- and family-centered environment. OHSU Doernbecher providers also travel throughout Oregon and Southwest Washington, providing specialty care to more than 3,000 children at more than 200 outreach clinics in 15 locations. Using state-of-the-art, secure two-way video and audio communication, OHSU Doernbecher’s Telemedicine Network connects pediatric intensivists and neonatologists to emergency room physicians statewide to help evaluate time-critical pediatric patient needs and assist with treatment plans.

* U.S. News & World Report 2014-15 Best Children’s Hospitals
** Children’s Hospital Association